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Fischer Audio DBA-02 for me. $160US. Reviews have said they're comparable with Westone 3's and other IEM's. Extremely well balanced, VERY accurate reproduction (almost too good, can't listen to music under 320kbps, preferably lossless), comfortable and good isolation

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I just tried the sennheiser HD pro 280's, and then the HD pro 380s. The 380s sounded a tiny bit clearer... but then I tried those 215's and I thought they sounded just as good as the 380's. Much of muchness to my non-audiophile ears. Then a sales rep came and told me that all the muso's go the hd pros cos they're more suited to studio applications but I could hardly tell the difference between the 3. Seems like the speakers they use are the same but the eq them all differently.

The 280's ear cups felt the best though and somehow that was more important to me lol. I'm getting an electric drumkit soon so I'll prob just get a set on ebay this weekend... $81 from the US vs $150 from a store... is it worth losing the warranty to buy them overseas? I could almost buy 2 sets...

It reviews headphones starting in the $0-$15 range, right up to $600-$1200 range. The regulars in the Head-Fi community know what they're talking about. They don't get caught up in hype and review it like it is. Great forum for researching ear/head phones.

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I use Shure SE535 headphones. They are excellent. Give you good clarity, very balanced and isloate a lot of external noise, up to 30DB. Heaps comfy as well, used them for 8 hours straight without any problems.

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I use Shure SE535 headphones. They are excellent. Give you good clarity, very balanced and isloate a lot of external noise, up to 30DB. Heaps comfy as well, used them for 8 hours straight without any problems.

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By far the biggest problem with the IEM market is the ability or lack thereof to try before you buy. I am really surprised that no one; manufacturers included have failed to come up with a disposable filter or something similar that can be used to hygienically test IEMs in store...

I had to go through 3-4 sets until I found a pair I was happy with; started with Sennheiser CX300s, bought a set of Klipsch S4is but ended up going back to the Senns, bought the B&O A8s but was a little underwhelmed with the lack of impact and bass response. I finally spoke to a colleague about his Audio Technica set; he was gracious enough to let me try them and I was almost sold on the spot. Ordered a pair about half an hour later (CK-10s) and have been smitten ever since. My point is, the lead up to this purchase was about $500 in now unused/unwanted gear but otherwise decent gear with no resale value...

My most recent experience (yesterday); I ventured out to get a set of Audio Technica AHD-700s, touted as the 'poor mans pro cans'... I went to Sydney HiFi @ Castle Hill which is a bit of a trek for me but they have cans on display so you can try them = worth it. Long story short, the ATs were great and could be driven comfortably enough by portable audio without an amp so I was near sold. The sales guy, very helpful, asked if I was interested in alternatives and suggested I try his favorite cans, the Denon AH-D2000's and practically slipped them on my head without asking... it was like headphone rape, and it was f**king amazing.

Subsequently, I left with a pair of headphones @ roughly 3 times what I went in there willing to spend and could not be happier (other than being conned by my wife into buying her a set of Denon noise cancelling phones for travel...). On top of this, I have ordered a Calyx Coffee USB powered DAC to get the most out of my digital music

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By far the biggest problem with the IEM market is the ability or lack thereof to try before you buy. I am really surprised that no one; manufacturers included have failed to come up with a disposable filter or something similar that can be used to hygienically test IEMs in store...

But owning different pairs of IEM's in the search for perfection of your own personal taste is half the fun! I know you mean though.

I'm still relatively new to the mid-high end IEM market though. I bought a pair of Westone 3's which are a true 3 way driver IEM. I paid $400US for them and they sounded great. Very very balanced. Although I blew the right mid-range driver when I plugged them into my laptop and they got absolutely blasted from an excessive volume level. I sent them back for warranty but then told them I'd like a refund when I realised I wouldn't be catching the bus anymore for work, taking advantage of their 30-day money back guarantee (one of the only companies that have this policy).

Ended up buying my FA DBA-02's 6 months later which I'm fairly happy with. Sometimes they lack bass depending how they're fitting in your ear , but for the music I've been into it's no issue (alternative rock, indie, folk, etc).

So all in all...it would be great if you could test them in store (not to mention that Australia doesn't stock 90% of the brands), but then you wouldn't go on the journy of finding the right set for you.

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agreed, very costly exercise but you are better for it, think of all the knowledge you can pass down.

the buds on my CX100's (or what ever the hell they are) are replaceable so youd think if a shop was serious about stocking things for trial they could have a few hundred handy. Not something a shop would do purely because people would go in, have a listen, buy cheaper online.

Sadly, i dont think high end audio will be something we see in stores in the future. Theres nothing in it for the retailer, trial and error will have to become the way its done

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Even if you have a fresh sleeve/bud on the earphone, it doesn't mean that wax/contaminant hasn't dropped down into the neck of the earphone. I have to use a needle type object every so often to clean out the neck/shaft of mine due to wax falling in there. There's no real sure way of keeping everything hygienically clean.

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It was a bad day to be a set of my headphones. Sennheiser cx200's no longer work unless I bend the plastic bit right before jack (loose wire or something) and my $19 legacy headphones stopped working in one ear after 3 hours use (got them free with my electric drum kit anyway).

Just picked up some tdk aliminium eb-750's after scratching my head for 10 minutes looking at all the stuff in dick smith. Mostly got them 'cos they look classy... and they're solid, I'm a spastic when it comes to fumbling around my pockets or looking for things so these will sit nicely as they actually have some weight to them and they're bright and shiny. Compared to the senn's they have alot more bass, which is much needed when you listen to an ipod/iphone but it might be a different story on my electric drum kit at home, hope it's not bass city, I'm really not a bass man.